Remember, your goal as a speaker should be to have inscribed on your tombstone, “He Made His Point, and Bored Them Less.” To accomplish this lifetime achievement, review part 1 for our first 3 tips: Ditch the slides, Stuff the Bag, and Begin, Be Brief, Be Seated. Then, dig in.
4. So, How to Begin?
Begin with the pitch, not with the windup! Any communication that you are willing to pay for begins effectively. Newspaper articles begin with a headline. News broadcasts begin with a teaser. Your job at the beginning of a talk is to capture attention and convince your audience that it’s in their interest to listen. All’s well that begins well.
5. Ride the Cycle
Listeners cycle in and out of attentiveness–mostly out. Twenty percent of your audience will be spaced out at any given time. Not because they’re stupid, but because they’re thinking about what you’ve said. So when you begin, establish your themes, and as you move through each section remind them where they are on the journey. When you get to the end, repeat your key points, with this special caveat: use slightly different language to make your points.
When you say something three times, you have a better statistical and psychological chance of getting your audience to hear you.
6. Make It Stick
Research indicates that attention-getting messages are simple, unexpected, and concrete. I worked with a guy who brought 11 different bottles of ketchup to a meeting to make a point about competition for shelf space in supermarkets. It was entertaining, memorable, and demonstrated his commitment and expertise.
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“No ideas but in things,” said the wonderful American poet William Carlos Williams. The mention of an object creates a visualized idea in our minds–we form an image of the thing, and retain it in our memory. This doesn’t happen at the mention of abstractions, like “value” or “memory.” But mention ketchup, and we know what you’re talking about.
Next…Prime Time, Human AV, and Content Schmontent